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Champion Alliance

Time for a new story, which I am planning on making longer and more efficient than the other two I have written. While those were roughly 20 chapters, I am planning on making this a 3-part story that has much more to offer. The idea of all of the Champions and former Champions in the Pokemon world teaming up has always intrigued me, and I am also a big fan of comic book teams like the Justice League and the Avengers, which is where I drew some of the inspiration for this story from. Hope you guys enjoy, feel free to comment, I will read and respond to them all! It will be rated PG-13 for some of the battle scenes.

Part I

Chapter 1- Hoenn

He felt at home here. A young man of twenty-six was on one knee as he felt the cool, moist air of the cave on his skin. His hand ran along the humongous meteorite that was stuck in the ground. The slick but bumpy texture of it was unlike any the young man had ever felt. The meteorite was a glossy silver color and the sight of it supplemented with the waterfall in the middle of the secluded area of the Meteor Falls cave was absolutely stunning to him. So many questions ran through his mind: How far did it travel before coming to Earth? How long ago did it hit? He could feel goosebumps rise up in his arms as he took everything in. There was no other place in Hoenn that could even compare to the majesty of this place for the young man. He flipped his light blue hair away from his eyes as he stood up.

As nice as his old job was, being able to spend his time studying and searching for any kind of rocks or meteorites he could find was the one thing that truly allowed him to feel fulfilled and at peace every day. He took a handheld, electronic pad from his pocket and snapped a picture of the meteorite with it. The then jotted down a few notes using the stylus that came with it. To him this wasn’t work, this was life.

This peaceful moment was disturbed as he began to hear a ruckus outside of the cave. The sound of feet stomping echoed throughout the room as did the sound of a man with a commanding voice barking orders. The young man walked towards the exit and quickly hid around a corner when he saw a group of men marching into the room he was just in. They were wearing steel helmets with dot patterns that resembled Braille on the front as well as dark silver-colored uniforms. There were at least twenty men as well as a Lairon at the side of each one. Each Lairon had a thick steel coat and razor sharp teeth to go along with the spikes on their backs. The leader of the pack did not wear a helmet, but instead wore a tall, golden hat with a short brim. He was an enormous man holding a long, steel whip in his hands who was following a Magnezone. He looked unbelievably fit for a man in his early fifties. The Magnezone was inspected the area with its giant, red eye and the small magnets at the sides of its steel body were pointing towards the room the young man was just in.

Magnezone stopped suddenly when it reached the entrance of the room with the meteorite. The young man, still hidden, kept his breathing silent as he observed, trying to figure out what they were doing. He kept his hand near his belt containing his Pokeballs, just in case things started to get out of hand. “It must be in here, then!” the leader barked with his commanding voice. “Hurry up, men!”

“Yes, Captain Franklin,” the responded.

Captain Franklin laid the whip as hard as he could on Magnezone’s back. “Point us the rest of the way, it can’t be far!” Magnezone turned around to its master and its body began flashing. Robotic sounds were coming out of it as it attempted to communicate that it wasn’t sure where to go next. “Fine, then. Everyone spread out and search the room!”

Each member of the group, followed by a Lairon, distributed themselves throughout the area. The leader and his Magnezone slowly walked to the center of the room where the meteorite was. He rubbed his chin and walked in a circle around it. At length, he said to himself, “It could be using this as a vessel. Magnezone, we need to get this open and see what’s inside. Use Magnet Bomb!”

Several silver orbs formed in front of Magnezone and it launched them at the meteorite, exploding upon impact. The crew flinched at the sound of the explosions and the young man gasped as he watched Magnezone attack the meteorite he had just gotten done admiring. The rock was persistent, but after another quick barrage of Magnet Bombs, a small crack could be seen. “We’re getting there,” the leader said. “Just a few more…”

“Enough!” the young man shouted as he came out from his hiding area. The high volume of his own voice surprised even him as it echoed throughout the walls of the cave. Captain Franklin as well as the rest of his men turned to look at him. The young man still has his hand near his belt.

Captain Franklin scowled as he approached the young man. “Enough of what, might I ask?”

“You know what,” the young man responded, not backing down. “I can not allow you to wreck such a beautiful relic of nature. I can assure you that you will not find what you are looking for in there. You shouldn’t have any business here.”

Captain Franklin put his face only inches from the young man’s. He had to lean forward to do so as he was far superior to the young man when it came to height. “I can assure you that you are probably the only one who cares about that worthless rock. To me it is nothing more than a possible hiding spot for what we are looking for.”

“And what is that?”

“Classified. I can’t tell you anything.” His scowl turned into a grin. “Even if you are the famous Steven Stone.”

Upon hearing that name, Captain Franklin’s men began whispering and muttering to each other. “Hey!” Captain Franklin turned and shouted to quiet them. He turned back to Steven. “What we do is none of your business. It would do you well to keep away from us. I could care less who you are, you are still outnumbered. Now scram!”

Captain Franklin raised his arm and pulled his whip back. Just as ready as he started to snap the whip, Steven caught his arm and stopped him. “You are wrong. Protecting that meteorite and any other precious stone you try to wreck is completely my business.” Captain Franklin shoved Steven backwards. Steven quickly grabbed a Pokeball from his belt and flung it in front of him.

A bright light flashed and a monstrous creature with four bulky, iron legs, glowing red eyes, and a giant, metallic “X” on its face appeared in front of Steven. The top half of the “X” resembled eyebrows whole the bottom half resembled a mustache. This allowed the creature to show that it had just as much intelligence as it did physical prowess. There were spikes on the bottom of each of its iron legs, which raised upward towards its body and stuck outward as the creature began levitating. “Meta, Metagross!” the creature bellowed in a deep voice.

“While you may have quantity,” Steven said, “I possess quality.”

“Magnezone, Thunderbolt!” Captain Franklin ordered.

“Maaaag,” Magnezone said as it fired a lightning bolt at Metagross’s face.

“Psychic,” Steven calmly requested.

A purple veil surrounded Metagross’s body as it halted the bolt in midair and made it perform a U-turn. The velocity of the bolt doubled as Metagross sent it flying back in Magnezone’s direction. The bolt struck the magnet Pokemon and sent it flying backward, crashing into Captain Franklin and knocking him over. Captain Franklin grunted as he momentarily had the wind knocked out of him. He and Magnezone collected themselves and got up. He looked back as his men, who were staring in amazement. “Well, what are you waiting for!” he barked, doing his best to save some face. “Get him out of here!”

The men each sent their Lairon towards Metagross, following Mangezone. Steven and Metagross did not even flinch as the herd of fierce Pokemon stormed in their direction. “Remember that Meteor Mash move we’ve been working on?” Steven asked Metagross. “Now is a perfect time to use it.”

“Meta!” Metagross said as its arms hardened and became covered by a silver coating. Magnezone, using Gyro Ball, began spinning wildly as it hurled itself at Metagross. Metagross swung its front arm like a baseball bat and whacked Magnezone across the room. As the Lairon closed in, Metagross, still floating in the air, began pounding every Lairon in sight. It used its back legs to hit the ones coming from behind and its front legs to take care of the ones in front of it and at its sides. The numerous Lairon were getting knocked on their backs, pounded into the ground, and even hurled up against the ceiling of the cave. Metagross made it look as effortless as swatting a group of flies. It then began using its Psychic abilities, lifting many Lairon in the air and crashing them against one another.

Within a matter of only two minutes, all twenty Lairon were scattered across the room unconscious. Magnezone was still gathering itself as it started making its way back to Captain Franklin. Steven pointed at the Lairon on the ground in front of him. “Unless you want to end up like them,” he addressed the entire group, “I suggest you all leave right now.” The terrified and stunned men returned all the Lairon in their Pokeballs and started leaving the cave.

Captain Franklin, who returned his Magnezone, couldn’t say a word as he was much too embarrassed. He walked slowly out of the room, eyeing Steven the whole time as he attempted to retain some of the intimidation he thought he had before the battle against Metagross. Steven matched his look with a cold glare. He didn’t say anything, either. Nothing needed to be said after the display Metagross just put on.

After everyone left the room, Steven rushed to the meteorite and inspected the crack. “It’s not too big,” he said to himself. “Still a wonderful meteorite.” Metagross came up next to him. He patted the center of the “X” on Metagross’s face. “Well done, Metagross. Thank you for your help.” Metagross nodded in response.

Steven looked back at the entrance of the cave, making sure everyone was completely out of sight. As a former Champion of Hoenn, he had come across numerous evil organizations, namely Team Aqua and Team Magma, but he was stumped about what this group was and what they wanted.

-----

“Ludicolo, what do you think?”

The Pokemon resembling a platypus wearing a sombrero crossed its arms and inspected the painting on the vast canvas covering the entire wall. It walked over and pointed at the top of the head of Kyogre, the mystical water-type Pokemon being painted by the man named Wallace. “Ludi, Ludi!” it said.

Wallace, holding a paintbrush, walked towards the area. “Indeed, it looks a bit dry and thin here,” he confirmed. “Would you mind spraying a bit of water there so I can enhance the color?” Ludicolo nodded and squirted water from its mouth, getting the paint on Kyogre’s head. “Thank you, my friend,” Wallace said as he dipped the brush in the dark blue paint. He climbed up his small ladder to reach the spot and took a few minutes to touch the area up before climbing down stepping backward to see his work. The painting was being done in the basement level of his mansion in Ever Grande City, where the size of the canvas on the wall allowed him to create a life-size painting of Kyogre. The Pokemon was now completely painted and it was surrounded by white.

Wallace smiled at the work of he and Ludicolo. He clapped his hands together. “Wonderful, magnificent, superb, and any other synonym imaginable!” he said with delight. “I’m not one to pat myself on the back, Ludicolo, but I firmly believe we captured the true majesty of this water-type Pokemon. It has endured droughts and battles with Groudon as well as trainers, hunters, and even pirates trying to capture it! What a marvelous creature this is!” Ludicolo smiled and gave a thumbs up to confirm its master’s statement. “Now it’s time to get started on the background. We need to get a lighter blue color to paint the depths of the ocean. I wonder if we should surround it with coral or with small Pokemon, or both!”

“And now for a breaking news story!” said the voice of a female reporter on the flat-screen television on the back wall. Wallace hadn’t been paying much attention to the TV as he painted. “There was another steel mill break-in at Mauville City by an unknown organization that was only described as wearing steel-grey colored uniforms. This is similar to incidents that have occurred all throughout Hoenn within the past month by this unidentified group. The most recent incident along with the one in Mauville occurred at Meteor Falls where a couple witnessed the group being fended off by geologist and former Hoenn Champion Steven Stone.”

Wallace turned and walked towards the TV at the mention of his good friend. “Volume up,” he said. The voice-activated television increased the loudness of the news report.

An elderly man was being interviewed outside of the Meteor Falls cave. “Describe to us what you saw,” the reporter asked as she held the microphone to his mouth.

“Well, I come to Meteor Falls with my wife every weekend to enjoy the view,” he started explaining enthusiastically. “We heard loud explosions coming from one of the caves near us and we went to see what was going on. Before we even had time to take everything in that was happening, we saw Steven Stone, THE Steven Stone! He was up against at least twenty or thirty men and their Pokemon.”

“And what happened from there?” the reporter asked.

“Well, I was gonna use my Pokemon to help him out, but he looked like he didn’t need any help. The man’s Metagross took out every last one! It was a treat to watch!”

“Did you see or notice anything about the group of men that attacked the area?”

“Not much. I just know they wore these strange uniforms and helmets that had dots all over them. Not sure what that was about. The leader mentioned that they were looking for something, but they never said what it was.”

“Thank you for your time, Sir. Back to you, Kelsey!”

Wallace turned the volume back down and shook his head. After everything that happened with Teams Aqua and Magma, he was getting tired of these criminal organizations. He couldn’t help but smile when the man described how Steven defeated the group. Throughout the many times the two friends battled, he only managed to beat Steven’s Metagross once, and that was by using three different Pokemon. Even though he was currently the Champion and he was three years older and more experienced, he could not deny that Steven was the most powerful trainer in Hoenn. Still, he couldn’t help but shake the thought that he should visit his friend to make sure everything was okay. Sure, he handled this unknown group with ease, but who knows what they may be capable of?

Wallace glanced over at his painting. “This can wait,” he said. He hit a button on his wall, summoning his secretary from the office he had in one of the upper levels in his house. His secretary, a young woman named Ella, came down in the elevator. She was a head shorter than Wallace and had long, dark hair.

“What can I do for you, Wallace?” she said as she walked out of the elevator.

Wallace took out his white cap and placed it over his teal-colored hair, which slightly jutted out of the hat. “May you push my meeting with the Wallace Cup committee to later tonight, please? I need to visit someone right now.”

“I’ll take care of that immediately,” Ella responded. “You are the first boss I have ever had who says, ‘please’ when asking me for a favor,” she said as she chuckled. “Can I ask who you are going to see?”

Wallace smiled. “My old friend Steven, you’ve met him, haven’t you?”

Ella nodded. “Yes. So I’m guessing you heard about what happened at Meteor Falls, then?”

“Just now, in fact,” Wallace responded. As a fellow Champion and friend, I should go see if he’s okay.”

“Well, that’s sweet of you,” Ella said. “Would you like me to get your car prepared?”

“No,” Wallace said as he took out a Pokeball. “I will be using another form of transportation today.”

Ella cocked her head and her eyes narrowed. “You don’t have any Pokemon that know Fly, do you? At least none that are large enough for you to ride on?”

Wallace wagged his finger in a playful manner. “Oh, but I do now. Remember when I helped stop Team Aqua as they attempted to attack and rob the head Devon Corporation building?”

“Yes,” Ella confirmed hesitantly, still not sure where Wallace was going with this.

“They rewarded me by allowing me to test one of their newest products that is still in development. It is a special HM that allows some flying types who can’t normally use Fly to learn the move. I mean my goodness, all flying types should know Fly, am I right?”

“Absolutely,” Ella responded. “So, which Pokemon did you use it on?”

“Come with me,” Wallace said as he walked into the elevator. It took the two all the way up to the roof of his enormous mansion that overlooked nearly all of Ever Grande City. Tall buildings and bright lights were visible downtown as well as the beautiful view of the vast ocean. Wallace tossed his Pokeball on the floor, revealing an enormous, dragon-like serpent with a gaping mouth and scaly, blue skin.

“Your Gyarados?!” Ella exclaimed.

Wallace nodded proudly. “Until now it was a part-flying type that couldn’t actually fly!” he said as he climbed on Gyarados’s back.

“How does it…. does it even have wings?” Ella asked, still astounded at the prospect of a Gyarados being able to fly.

“Technically no, however the HM allowed the fins all over its elongated body to develop and flap in a way that allows it to fly. From there it turns into basic aerodynamics. Does that makes sense?”

Ella nodded her head at length. “Um, sure,” she said with uncertainty. “I feel sorry for whoever tries to challenge you for the Hoenn championship.”

“Indeed. You thought Gyarados was a fierce battler already, imagine how tough it will be to beat now that it can fly!” He patted Gyarados on the side of its head. “Let’s go to our friend Steven, shall we?” he said. Wallace then gave Ella a quick wave before Gyarados took off and began soaring through the air. Many of the residents of Ever Grande City looked up to see Gyarados take off from Wallace’s roof, but they only caught a quick glimpse as the Pokemon was out of sight in a matter of seconds.

Ella stood on the roof, shaking her head and smiling. “What would Hoenn be without him?” she said.

-----

On the outskirts of Meteor Falls was a small house that Steven and his Pokemon built together. He has lived there ever since his retirement from being the Hoenn Champion two years ago. Though he visited his hometown of Mossdeep on occasion to see his father and catch up with old friends, he enjoyed the solitude and peacefulness as well as being close to the Kreter geology building and, of course, Meteor Falls.

Mark Kreter was the owner of the building and the one Steven has worked with the longest. “The only one on Earth who knows more about geology than myself,” Steven would tell people. There were only four other people who worked in the building, but they were all so knowledgeable and diligent in their work that no other help was necessary.

Inside Steven’s one-floor house, he sat at his computer researching different criminal organizations that have been seen in Hoenn. Most of what he found had to do with Team Aqua and Team Magma, but he knew from experience that the group he ran into today was not them. Teams Galactic and Plasma were also possibilities, but sightings of them in Hoenn were rare to none and the motives of those groups and the group today didn’t match up. Steven rubbed the sides of his head with his pointer fingers as he stared at the screen. His frustration about anyone treating such a gorgeous meteorite in that fashion was still with him.

Steven stopped when he noticed a great shadow being cast over his house. His heart started beating quickly. His initial thought was that the criminal group was out there again. He exited his house and looked up to see Wallace hovering in the air with his Gyarados. In contrast to Ella’s stunned reaction, Steven simply crossed his arms and grinned. “Wallace, is there anything you can’t do?” he asked.

Wallace and Gyarados descended to the ground. Wallace hopped off and gave his friend a hug. “You already know the answer to that question. It’s a special HM that was a gift from your dad’s company from last year.”

“Now if only I could get my Metagross to fly,” Steven said. “Oh, that’s right…” he said as the two shared a laugh. “So what brings you here?”

“Well, I watched the news today,” Wallace explained. “Apparently you had yourself quite the battle in one of those caves,” he said as he pointed towards the falls. “I just came to see if you were alright.”

“I appreciate that, my friend,” Steven said. “I’m just fine. I’m angrier about that group trying to destroy a meteorite. I’ve been researching all day and I can’t find anything about them.”

Wallace rubbed his chin. “Well, I heard something about them in the news about how they also raided a steel mill in Mauville. It’s pretty obvious they specialize in steel-type Pokemon much like yourself. I just wonder what they could be searching for so anxiously.”

“We will figure it out,” Steven said. “I should have gotten more information out of them rather than simply dismissing them. I had them at my mercy.”

Wallace smiled and patted Steven’s shoulder. “I’m sure you did. I wouldn’t worry about it, though. It’s not your responsibility to bring every single criminal to justice.”

“Yet somehow it feels like it is,” Steven said. He looked over at the Kreter building. “This is my home now and I should protect what is in those caves and the Kreter building as I would my own family and friends.”

“You did drive them away though and prevented them from going into the Kreter building,” Wallace reminded Steven, trying to take all of his guilt away.

“True,” Steven said. “I still think I should do some investigating and research to find out who these guys are and what they want. I’m sure by looking at the shoeprints in the ground my group and I can find out something.”

This was only the second time Wallace has ever been to Meteor Falls and the first time he has had the opportunity to take a good look at it. The caves on the outside were an enrapturing golden color and he was able to notice a waterfall on the inside of one of the caves. He felt more peacefulness here than in any of the places he has traveled to in Hoenn. It was understandable to him why Steven was so bent on protecting it. “Tell you what,” he said. “I have a meeting concerning the Wallace Cup tonight but it can wait until tomorrow. It isn’t until next year and it is called the ‘Wallace’ Cup, after all. I’ll just call Ella and tell her to postpone so I can help you out and do some exploring here. The Champion of a region should know all of its territories. You wouldn’t mind that, would you?”

“Of course not,” Steven said. “I enjoy your company. I would also like to get a better look at your flying Gyarados. Certainly not something one sees every day!”

Had to give this a look, and I'm glad I did- I'm liking this so far. Thanks for the PM, and if you're gonna do a PM list for this one, I'd like to be on it, please.

I like the sound of that special Fly HM device, though. What should really be touched upon, in my personal opinion, is Yanmega's normal inability to learn Fly. I mean, the HG/SS Pokedex specifically states it can support an adult human in flight, so... But yes, I like how this is going so far.

Grrrrrr Missingno Master, I was gonna post first when my wifi got knocked out. Unfair. Go Genesect! (slashes wifi and sets up mifi)
Anyway, good story so far. Your description of Metagross is very.............Unique. I never thought of that X like that. Gyarados is weird though on how it can fly like that. Its diminutive wings would be home on a Joltik.
PM List?

Grav

Formerly Grav.Quite inactive, but still available. If you have a fanfic that no one wants to review, PM/VM me and I'll give you a hand.

Read on request. This is a nicely written fic. I can tell how everything is and eberything quite easily thanks to your descriptions. There were a few minor errors, capitalizing ones, but other than that I found none. I can't say much about the pair's personalities beacuse I don't really know them, but I trust you did fine.

"It has endured droughts and battles with Groudon as well as trainers, hunters, and even pirates trying to capture it!"

Had to give this a look, and I'm glad I did- I'm liking this so far. Thanks for the PM, and if you're gonna do a PM list for this one, I'd like to be on it, please.

I like the sound of that special Fly HM device, though. What should really be touched upon, in my personal opinion, is Yanmega's normal inability to learn Fly. I mean, the HG/SS Pokedex specifically states it can support an adult human in flight, so... But yes, I like how this is going so far.

Thanks! And I shall add you on the list. I could do more to describe the Fly HM device, I never knew Yanmega couldn't use Fly. That's pretty crazy!

Grrrrrr Missingno Master, I was gonna post first when my wifi got knocked out. Unfair. Go Genesect! (slashes wifi and sets up mifi)
Anyway, good story so far. Your description of Metagross is very.............Unique. I never thought of that X like that. Gyarados is weird though on how it can fly like that. Its diminutive wings would be home on a Joltik.
PM List?

Thanks for the comment! And yeah, that's how I always saw the X on Metagross, I didn't know if that was intentional during the original design or not. And I've always wanted to see a flying Gyarados. It always drove me nuts that it was a flying type that couldn't fly. Absolutely, you're on the PM list!

I also like the sound of this as well. The idea of all the champions coming together sounds like a neat idea that's open to interpretation.

Thank you! I figure in the games and even in the show you'll see the Champion fight against an evil team so I figured, why not have them join forces.

Read on request. This is a nicely written fic. I can tell how everything is and eberything quite easily thanks to your descriptions. There were a few minor errors, capitalizing ones, but other than that I found none. I can't say much about the pair's personalities beacuse I don't really know them, but I trust you did fine.

I appreciate the compliments! I'll be sure to go back and check my capitalizations, too.

I have vague idea that I know where the pirates part comes from

I just noticed this. I see what you did there.

I took a page out of Pixar's book for that. I always liked how they made small nods during a movie to other Pixar movies.

“Mr. Roberts, I don’t understand. So you’re saying if Close Combat is used against a Froslass, it won’t hit it at all? I thought Ice types were weak against Fighting type moves?” inquired the young girl as she pushed her glasses up her face with her finger.

Mr. Roberts was a middle-aged, balding man who stood with a group of kids in their early to mid-teens outside of a building labeled, “Eterna Trainer’s Academy.” They were standing on a field meant for Pokemon battling. Mr. Roberts released a buff, bipedal creature out of its Pokeball. It looked like its body was made of purely muscle. It stood in front of another Pokemon that floated above the ground. It was a feminine-looking Pokemon whose body was made out of ice. “This is true,” he told the girl. “But since Froslass is part-Ghost type, it won’t do any damage.”

A chubby boy wearing a baseball cap raised his hand. “I thought they would cancel each other out and the move would be regularly effective?”

“Good point, Eric,” Mr. Roberts said. “But that only works if the type split is super effective and not very effective. For example, if Machop used Close Combat against a Skarmory, which is part Steel and part Flying, the types would cancel out and the attack would be regularly effective. The difference, however, is that Fighting moves are not at all effective against Ghost types. Froslass being part Ghost takes precedent over being part Ice type. Does that make any sense?”

Eric tried registering what was said for a moment. “Not quite,” he said. “Is Ms. Cynthia coming back soon? She explains things real good.”

“She should be back from her trip soon,” Mr. Roberts said.

“I read on the Internet that you CAN hit Ghost types with Fighting moves if they have split types,” another boy said in a snide tone.

Mr. Roberts rolled his eyes. “Don’t believe everything you read on the Internet, Thomas. I’m doing my best to teach you guys. I know this is right.”

“Hey!” Eric retorted defensively as he put his hands on his hips. “That’s…..part of it. Anyway, can’t we just see a demonstration?”

“Yeah, I still don’t believe you, Mr. Roberts,” Thomas said. “Ms. Cynthia needs to get here soon and tell us how it really is.”

Mr. Roberts crossed his arms and shook his head. “Guys, guys, c’mon now…” He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the familiar Jeep pull up near the field. The kids all ran towards the car and enthusiastically hugged and greeted her.

Though she usually dressed more sophisticated, Cynthia had a more casual outfit on consisting of jeans and a blue, sleeveless shirt. Her elegant, blonde hair nearly touched the ground. She was much taller than anyone there, including Mr. Roberts, and she had a pretty, youthful face. Though she was thirty years of age, she could pass for a college student. “Wow, what a reception!” she said in a soft, intelligent voice. “You all certainly missed me! That makes me feel so special!”

Numerous questions and praises were thrown into the air by the kids: “How was Unova? We missed you sooo much! What’d you see? Did you catch anything new?”

Cynthia laughed and held her hands out. “Just a moment, guys. We’ll have time to talk about that later. Why don’t you all go back over to the field?” she requested. The kids immediately obeyed and rushed back over to the field where the two Pokemon remained.

Cynthia then approached Mr. Roberts, who shook her hand. “Good to have you back, Cynthia. How was Unova?” he asked.

“Good to be back. Unova was wonderful,” she said. “I didn’t get to meet any of the legendaries I looked for but I got to discover many different Dragon-types there that I never even knew about. As for the views, Undella Town has the most beautiful beach I’ve ever seen. If you and your wife are planning a vacation this summer, I highly recommend it. Just beware of the Castelia airport, it’s always very packed.”

Mr. Roberts nodded. “I’ll look into that. Thanks for the tip!” he said before looking back at the field where the kids were. “I’m glad you’re here. I’ve had some trouble convincing them about the Machop and Froslass experiment.”

Cynthia put her hand on her forehead. “Oh no, they didn’t give you too much trouble over that, did they?”

Mr. Roberts shrugged and smiled. “Eh, I suppose they did. They really wanted you to explain it to them.”

“Oh my goodness. I’ll be sure to have a talk with them about that. It was Thomas, wasn’t it?”

Mr. Roberts laughed. “Among others, but mostly him. He seems to believe the Internet is the most accurate source of information out there. Don’t worry about it, though. I get it all the time.”

Cynthia noticed the kids circled around Machop and Froslass. “Okay, well let’s prove that you were telling them the truth,” she said as the two teachers walked towards the field.

“Alright,” Cynthia addressed everyone loudly. “I will be happy to tell you about my Unova trip after this experiment. It came to my attention that you guys gave Mr. Roberts a hard time about this subject.” Her voice became stern. “I expect you all to treat all of the teachers here the same way you would treat me, is that understood?”

Many of the kids looked to the ground in shame. “Yes, Ms. Cynthia,” they said in unison.

Cynthia smiled and her voice became soft and calm once more. “Okay, then. Let’s put this into action. Close Combat would usually be super effective against Ice types, right? Since Froslass is part Ghost-type, the attack will not work at all. No damage will be dealt. So go ahead Machop, use Close Combat!”

Machop nodded and ran at an unmoving Froslass. With lightning speed, it threw its fists at its opponent, but all of them went through Froslass as if it were transparent. Machop even threw it a few spinning kicks, but to no avail. The class watched in amazement. “I told you, Thomas!” Eric said.

“Ah, you were siding with me, earlier! Quit sucking up!” Thomas said as he shot a glare at Eric.

Cynthia walked in the middle of the field where the two Pokemon were standing. She motioned her hand towards Machop. “So, as you all just saw. Machop could not touch Froslass at all. If Froslass was purely an Ice type, that move would have dealt some serious damage, but it is is part Ghost, so despite what you may read on the Internet,” she emphasized the word, “Internet” and paused as her eyes shifted over to Thomas, “Froslass would not receive any damage.”

“Wow, we’re sorry, Mr. Roberts,” Eric said.

Mr. Roberts smiled. “It’s all good, Eric. Just know that I’ve been battling since Kabuto and Omanyte were common, so I have experience,” he joked, getting a laugh out of everyone, including Cynthia.

Once the lesson was over, Cynthia spent a while chatting with students who wanted to ask her questions and catch up with her afterwards. Many of the praises Cynthia got from her students were that she always talks with her students as if they were her peers rather than having acting superior as many previous owners of Eterna Trainer’s Academy used to. Once the last student left, Cynthia got in her Jeep and headed towards her hometown of Celestic for the first time in over a month. With the top down, the car ride reminded her how thin and clear the air was. She had become accustomed to the salty air of Undella Town.

The route Cynthia drove along was empty as it led into the dirt roads of Celestic town. Finding any kind of modern technology or architecture was difficult to find in this town. Unlike the majority of towns in Sinnoh, this one was based around tradition and preserving the way the cities in the region all used to look. The houses were mostly small and made from sturdy wood. A pit in the center of the town led to a small cave, which was surrounded by a crystal clear body of water that was clean enough to drink right out of. Many of the residents looked up and waved when they saw Cynthia’s car and she did her best to return every single greeting.

Much like at the Eterna Trainer’s Academy, many of the children playing outside stopped and ran over to her, asking her numerous questions. She was used to this kind of attention; she received it in Celestic even before she gained the status of Sinnoh Champion. This was partially due to her living there her entire life and being the granddaughter of the most famous professor in the town. After Cynthia greeted and walked through the mob of children, she entered her grandmother’s house.

“Grandma!” she called as she opened the door. “Everyone, I’m back!”

A young girl of sixteen rushed down the stairs. She had the same blonde hair as Cynthia only it went down to her shoulders rather than her knees. “Hey, big sis!” she said as she embraced Cynthia. “I missed you! You know you gotta tell me all about Unova, right?”

Cynthia giggled. “Yes, Lora, I know. I’ve been asked about it a dozen times so I’m very well-rehearsed with my stories,” she said.

Cynthia’s grandparents, Carolina and Ken, followed as they walked down the steps. “There’s our Champion,” Ken said.

Cynthia, who towered over both of her grandparents, leaned down to give them each a hug. “Good to see you guys again,” she said. “I’ve had quite a month but it’s nice to be back in my peaceful town again.”

“Always great to see my gorgeous grandbaby,” Carolina said. For someone who was small and elderly, she had a very commanding voice as opposed to her husband’s soft voice. Carolina always joked about how Cynthia just missed inheriting her loud mouth in her genes. “So what kept you? Did you stop at your academy in Eterna?”

“I did,” she said. “I was helping poor Mr. Roberts out, he was having a bit of a tough time with the kids.”

Carolina winked and pointed at Cynthia. “Bet they listened to you though, right?”

Cynthia humbly smiled and nodded her head. “Yes.”

Carolina gave a single clap of her hands. “I knew it!” she said excitedly. “Teaching is in your blood. When you have a brilliant professor for a grandma, you know you’re going to be a great teacher yourself.”

“Well, studying legendaries is my main passion but teaching kids how to battle is what I love, too.”

Cynthia, Lora, and Carolina all sat on a long couch that could fit at least eight people. Ken walked into the kitchen and quickly back out with coffee. The four shared cups of coffee and stories for a while. “So, Lora got her sixth badge just last week,” Ken bragged.

“That’s wonderful!” Cynthia said as Lora pulled it out to show her sister.

“I told her, ‘No type advantages allowed. That’s how you grow as a trainer.’” Carolina said. “She wanted to use her Flareon against Gardenia but I said, ‘Nope. You’re using Piplup.’”

Lora put her hands on her face. “You have no idea how nervous I was.”

Carolina smiled and winked. “But what happened, grandbaby?”

Lora grinned. “I worked around the type disadvantage and remembered that Piplup could use Peck. It threw Gardenia completely off guard.”

“So what about you, Cynthia?” Ken asked after taking a sip of his coffee. “Did your research go well?”

“Yes, very much so. Mostly thanks to the Champion there. She made sure to make me feel very welcome in Unova. Fourteen years old and she handles Dragon-types better than trainers two to three times her age. Amazing to think she is younger than most of my students,” Cynthia said. “I got to meet Dragon-types I never even knew existed.”

“I’ve seen her battle on TV,” Lora said. “Absolutely amazing. Not as good as you, but close.”

“So about the legendaries there?” Carolina inquired.

Cynthia shook her head. “No such luck. I didn’t get an opportunity to meet any. Speaking of Dragon-types though, I hear the three main legendaries are all part-Dragon type.”

Carolina nodded. “Reshiram, Zekrom, and Kyurem. I have done research on the DNA Splicer theory, but so little is known about the trio, especially Kyurem, that it’s simply too difficult to come to any conclusions right now.”

“Kyurem, such a scary-looking Pokemon,” Lora said. “Wasn’t it the one who caused that deadly blizzard a couple of years ago in Unova?”

“Yes,” Cynthia said. “That incident is the reason we haven’t heard anything about the G-Men in so long.”

“The G-Men,” Ken asked. “They were that detective agency led by that red-haired fellow who called himself the Dragon Tamer, right?”

Cynthia and Carolina both nodded. “It may be good thing you didn’t run into Kyurem,” Carolina said to Cynthia. “No offense to your ability as a trainer, but if the Dragon Tamer and his team couldn’t do anything against it, I don’t know who could.”

“It’s odd how he just fell off the face of the Earth after that,” Lora said. “He used to be such a great trainer.”

“I think it has to do with the police investigation that followed. He’s in danger of being arrested for waking Kyurem and starting the incident.” Cynthia said.

“Wow, I never knew that,” Ken said. “So they think he actually did it?”

Cynthia shrugged. “That’s what it looks like but no one knows for sure. They’re still investigating, but they could make a decision soon. ”

“Well, anyway,” Carolina said, wanting to change the subject, “I’m sure you met other great Dragon types. Did you get to see a Hydregion?”

Cynthia sat up straighter and the volume of her voice rose. “Yes!” she exclaimed. “It was an amazing creature!”

“What’s a Hydregion?” Lora asked.

Cynthia placed her closed fist under her chin as she thought for a moment how to describe it. “Well, you’ve seen a Dodrio, right?” she asked.

“Yeah,” Lora said as she nodded her head.

“And you’ve seen a Salamence?”

“Uh huh.”

Cynthia extended her arms out and then put them together. “Imagine those two Pokemon combined into one.”

Lora’s eyes enlarged. “Whoa!”

Cynthia and her family continued chatting and sharing stories. Though Cynthia enjoyed the traveling, research discoveries, and responsibilities that came with being a Champion, it was nice in this moment to be able to simply spend time with her family in her peaceful town.

This one was written along with Chapter 2 so I got this one out pretty quickly. It's short but still a good chapter. Still working on Chapter 4, which will be longer and more elaborate. Enjoy and feel free to comment!

Chapter 3- Kanto

A blue sports car raced down the country road near Pallet Town. The top was down since it was a clear night with a warm breeze and the moon shone brightly on the small town. Other than a few small houses, the road was surrounded by nothing more than vast amounts of farmland and green pastures. A young man held one hand on the steering wheel of the vehicle going at least ninety miles per hour. His other arm was around the shoulder of a cute, blonde-haired girl his age who sat in the passenger seat. Her sister who was just a year younger sat in the back. “It’s coming up right here,” she said as she pointed out a modest house made of bricks. The driver slowed down and pulled in front of the house. “Thanks for a fun time tonight, Blue,” the girl said as she bit her lower lip.

“No problem,” Blue responded. He took her by the hips and pulled her in close before pressing his lips against hers. She rubbed her hand against the side of his head and caressed his spiky, brown hair as they kissed.

“My turn!” a voice from the back demanded after just over a minute. The other sister sighed after they finished and climbed out of the car. The younger sister then leaped into the front on Blue’s lap and they kissed for a while, as well.

“Okay, you’ve had enough,” the older sister said at length.

“Sorry,” the younger sister groaned as she got out of the car.

“Yep, the way you two kiss, I can definitely tell you’re sisters,” Blue said.

The two girls giggled. “Good night, Champ. See you soon?” the older one asked.

“Absolutely,” Blue responded before giving a quick wave of his hand and zooming down the road again.

Blue smiled and turned up the music as he laid his foot harder on the gas pedal. He had a lot to smile about. His main rival was in another region now, leaving him as the sole Champion of Kanto. Though he was still getting used to the idea of fame, he still chose to live in Pallet for the time being. He had a cameo in an action movie that came out earlier in the year called The Amazing Ariados-Man. Rather than use the paycheck from that to invest in getting a new place and moving to a bigger city, he decided to buy the sports car first.

He was doing a lot of thinking lately about where to go in life now. He was already the Champion as he always dreamed, but he never planned too much of what to do after that. “Relax, enjoy life, and destroy challengers,” is how he would typically respond when asked.

Blue’s thoughts were interrupted when he noticed flashing blue and red lights behind him. He rolled his eyes and pulled to the side of the road when he saw the motorcycle cop speeding up to catch up with him. Blue laid his head back on the seat and acted uninterested as the lady walked up to his car. She was an attractive woman in her thirties and her long, blue hair stuck out of her police hat. He approached Blue on his side and inspected the vehicle. “Quite a ride you have here,” she said. “Although just because it can go ninety miles an hour doesn’t mean it should. You do know that’s how fast you were going, right?”

Blue shrugged and tried to act surprised. “Apparently not, Officer Jenny. I just bought it last week so I guess I got a little excited.” He gave a smile from one half of his mouth. “With no other cars around, it gave me some extra space.”

“You can be excited and still go the speed limit,” Jenny said. “Being the only car on the road is still no excuse. There have been more and more herds of Stantler moving here from Johto and they tend to be a road hazard. I wouldn’t want you or a Stantler to get injured or killed from that. It would also be a shame to see such a nice car get ruined.”

“It is nice,” Blue said, ignoring everything else Jenny just explained. He patted the seat next to him. “You can take a quick ride in it with me if you want.”

Jenny pursed her lips and crossed her arms. “How old are you, kid?”

“Twenty. Out of the teen range so that makes me just as much of an adult as yourself. C’mon, you don’t recognize me?”

“Oh, I do,” Jenny said as she pulled out a ticket and began writing on it. “It doesn’t mean you get special treatment.”

“Wasn’t asking for any,” Blue responded. “Seriously though, don’t you want to be able to say you went out with the Champion? It’s like something on every woman’s bucket list. You can keep the police outfit on, too. You really fill it out well.”

“Ugh…” Jenny groaned as he handed Blue the ticket. “Do you always objectify women like this?”

Blue put his hand on his chest and pretended to be insulted. “Objectify? No, ‘compliment’ is the word you’re looking for.” He took a quick look at the citation. “Hundred and twenty? I got that in my pocket now!” he said as he pulled out some bills.

Jenny kept her arms crossed. “You don’t pay me, you go to the court and pay.”

“I know, just wanted to show you I’ve got it taken care of. No big deal. Pocket change to me.”

Jenny couldn’t help but crack a slight smile despite trying to keep a straight face. “Good for you,” she said sarcastically. “And I’m already taken, by the way,” she added. “Have a good rest of the night and try to slow down, will you?”

Blue gave her a quick hand salute. “You got it, Officer,” he said. He watched Jenny get back on her motorcycle and waited for her to start riding away. Blue could see her smirking at him and waving for him to go first in the rear view mirror. “Not my type anyway,” he mumbled as he slowly pulled back onto the road and drove away.

More and more stars appeared as the night went on during Blue’s trip to his neighborhood. Since there were hardly any buildings or bright lights in Pallet like there was in Celadon, it made it easier to see the illuminations in the sky. Blue pulled up next to a hilltop surrounded by trees. He parked next to the stairway, which led to an oval-shaped building with a windmill next to it. The top of the hill contained an astounding view of the mountains, valleys, and farmland that surrounded the town of Pallet. The door that led inside the building had a sign that read “Laboratory of Professor Samuel Oak: Pokemon Specialist.”

Blue walked through the halls of the lab until he reached the main room, which had a gigantic window overlooking nearly the entire town. Countless amounts of Pokeballs were seen stacked on the shelves covering the white walls. Transportation machines and computers were also organized all throughout the room. Professor Oak, an elderly man with neatly combed gray hair and a lab coat sat at one of the computers. He swiveled around in his chair when he heard the footsteps. “Blue! How are you?” he asked.

Blue fixed the collar on his black, button-up shirt. “Not bad, Gramps. I see everyone else went home for the night. Just came to see how the little guy is doing.”

Professor Oak motioned to an environmental room that contained plants, a small water source, and a tiny fox Pokemon. “Eevee is improving, but we are still trying to keep its body temperature from getting too low.” he explained. “Premature hatchings tend to yield these kinds of symptoms, but keeping it in the room at a higher temperature is keeping its body functioning stable. I expect it to make a full recovery by the end of approximately three weeks.”

Blue entered the room and got on a knee. Eevee’s ears perked up and it clumsily ran to him before standing on its hind legs and resting its front paws on Blue’s knee. It was about half the size of an average Eevee. “How ya doing, dude?” Blue said as he lightly scratched Eevee’s head. It shut its eyes as it was being pet and smiled.

Professor Oak entered the room and chuckled. “It certainly has enough energy for you, Blue,” he said. “We didn’t observe this much activity out of it earlier today.”

“Guess it knows a good trainer when it sees one,” Blue said as he hand fed Eevee one of the berries that was in its food bowl.

“You are a very good trainer, Blue,” Professor Oak said. “Which is why I’m wondering why you haven’t had a battle in so long? I thought Champions were usually had challengers now and then. When was the last time you have even been to Indigo Plateau?”

“I don’t know, why does it matter? Plenty of Champions go a while without a battle. The Elite Four is pretty hard to beat up there in the Plateau, so it’s not like challengers come every day,” Blue responded, still petting Eevee.”

Professor Oak shrugged. “Well, all I’m saying is ever since you became Champion and got your own place it’s been mostly spending time in front of the TV or with one of your little girlfriends,” he said. “Shouldn’t you keep up your training or find some way to keep battling?”

Blue stood up (to Eevee’s dismay) and held his arms out. “Why is it always something?” he asked, clearly irritated by his grandfather’s questioning. “You always badgered me about my training when I challenged the Gym Leaders, now I’m the Champion, and it’s still not enough! What more do I have to do? I’ve traveled and trained hard my whole life and I just want some time to relax for once!”

Professor Oak held up his hand defensively. “Listen, I am unbelievably proud of you for becoming the Champion. You worked very hard to achieve that title and I understand some time off is a good thing. I’m just looking out for what’s best for you because I love you. I don’t want to see you waste your life away. You may lose your Champion title one day. If you remember when you originally became Champion you lost that title after only a day.”

Blue had his arms crossed. “Yeah, and then that so-called Champion left town and no one ever saw him again. Then Dragon Boy stepped down and I took back over. I don’t see how anyone can beat my team now, especially with how powerful my Blastoise has been looking lately. Not even my annoying rival can beat it now!”

“That may be true, but my point is you can’t rely on your Champion title to carry you through your whole life. Couldn’t you find some kind of hobby or activity?”

“Well, I was in a movie recently,” Blue pointed out. “Didn’t you see that?”

Professor Oak grinned and nodded. “Yes, I saw it. The superhero one, right? I only remember seeing you in one scene.”

“That’s because it’s called a cameo,” Blue said matter of factly.

“Look, I’m just saying I’ve read articles about Champions from other regions doing productive things when they aren’t working to defend their titles. Steven from Hoenn got involved in geology when he was done being the Champion, Wallace has the Wallace Cup that he runs, and Cynthia from Sinnoh owns a Trainer’s Academy,” Professor Oak explained.

“Well, I’m sorry I’m not a frickin’ genius like any of them,” Blue said. “I’m just a guy who wants to enjoy his life right now. I’ll find my niche one day.”

Professor Oak sighed. “I’m sorry if it sounds like I’m placing too many expectations on you. It’s just that I know what you are capable of and I know can contribute more to the world than winning Pokemon battles and being in movies.”

Blue has talks like this so many times with his grandfather that he eventually told himself that the best thing to do was humor him. Professor Oak’s words would sink into his head for a couple days or so and then leave until the next time they had a similar talk. “Okay, Gramps. You’re right. I’ll figure something out,” he said.

Blue stayed for a little while longer as Professor Oak ran a couple of tests on Eevee to see how much more healthy and strong it was becoming. Blue also visited some of his Pokemon that he couldn’t carry in his party; the ones that were stored in his PC Boxes. There were at least five dozen of them so he didn’t have time to see them all.

Blue’s mood lightened more and more as he spent time with Professor Oak and his Pokemon. Talks about the subject of his future plans always hit a nerve with him because deep down he knew there was some truth to what his grandfather was telling him. Blue and Professor Oak spent some time running tests on Eevee’s DNA in comparison with some of the numerous Pokemon it could evolve into. “It is very interesting how some evolutions require stones while others only require love and experience during specific times of the day.”

Blue, who had to admit he did find Professor Oak’s work very interesting, concurred. “I’ve never seen another Pokemon like it,” he said.

“And to think there are still some evolutions we may not have even discovered yet for Eevee!” Professor Oak said.

After staying a while longer and growing tired, Blue gave Eevee one last scratch on the head and gave Professor Oak a quick hug. “Well, thanks for the talk, Gramps. I’ll see you later. Let me know how Eevee progresses.” He looked at Eevee, who was longing for Blue to stay. “You’re gonna make a rookie trainer very happy someday.”

Professor Oak gave Blue a wave as he left the laboratory. “Take care of yourself, Blue.”

Blue drove back to his home which was only a few minutes away from the lab. He entered his new house, which was easily the largest house in Pallet Town. He removed his necklace and day clothes before grabbing a quick shower and getting into his night clothes. He held numerous gatherings and parties in his spacious quarters in the past, but the place was completely quiet tonight. Friends and girlfriends seemed to come and go throughout this place, but there was still an empty feeling Blue had when the house at this vacant state.

After grabbing a quick bite to eat, Blue laid in his king size bed and flipped the TV on. Blue searched through a few different channels until he saw the familiar sight of Steven and his Metagross on the news. He never actually met Steven but he has been in the news numerous times.

“That does it for Kanto news, and now on to Hoenn. We have a previously unrevealed tape of the incident that occurred in Meteor Falls where former Champion Steven Stone took on twenty trainers who were vandalizing the site of the meteorite,” the reporter said.

Blue watched as the shaky camera captured Metagross using its psychic abilities to throw a group of Lairon around like rag dolls. The reporter continued as the tape rolled on, “Many people in the region are hailing Steven as a hero for stopping this unknown group that has recently been causing trouble all over the Hoenn region.” Professor Oak’s words burned in Blue’s head as he watched Steven vanquish the group and send them out of the cave. He saw what Steven was doing and looked around his room as he lay on his bed, staring at his humongous plasma TV. He quickly switched the TV off before resting his head on his pillow and dozed off.

I'm reviewing just chapter 2. I just lack time to read the third due to my dealings with my assignment and polishing my story making skills with my original story and Valiant emblem. Really, you may have no idea what its like to plan a video game project I've been doing for 5 months.

Anyways.
a. The first catchy part is the way you can show internet dependence. Sure the internet has answers. But some answers are better tried and seen for themselves. Lovely the way you catch it. The Machop VS Frostlss type is a prime example. The secondary type balance comes to great questioning too. You fit the phrases greatly.

b. So who is his Mr. G? are you referring to Natural harmonious Groupius? Perhaps you are mixing some fan based mysteries in your story? I'm sorta sensing that.

c. Oh not Hydreigon. Not that bastard! I HATE FIGHTING AGAINST DRAGONS! Childhood phobia I recall. but she missed meeting any legendary? Uhhh ... what about the Kami trio?

I'm reviewing just chapter 2. I just lack time to read the third due to my dealings with my assignment and polishing my story making skills with my original story and Valiant emblem. Really, you may have no idea what its like to plan a video game project I've been doing for 5 months.

That's okay, I really appreciate the review! It sounds like your project is very time consuming.

Anyways.
a. The first catchy part is the way you can show internet dependence. Sure the internet has answers. But some answers are better tried and seen for themselves. Lovely the way you catch it. The Machop VS Frostlss type is a prime example. The secondary type balance comes to great questioning too. You fit the phrases greatly.

Thank you, I figured seeing is better than reading in some cases.

b. So who is his Mr. G? are you referring to Natural harmonious Groupius? Perhaps you are mixing some fan based mysteries in your story? I'm sorta sensing that.

It's not a person, the G-Men is a group. I can't say any more about what role the G-Men play because I don't want to give away anything.

c. Oh not Hydreigon. Not that bastard! I HATE FIGHTING AGAINST DRAGONS! Childhood phobia I recall. but she missed meeting any legendary? Uhhh ... what about the Kami trio.

Yes, those dang dragons haunted me from Red/Blue all the way to Black/White 2! As for the Kami trio, she may have met them in the anime but many of the elements of my story are taken from the games. This plot point was more for the sake of the story.

Sorry for not replying- I've been very busy/lazy lately (awful combination). Rest assured I have been reading, though. I could easily imagine Blue actually hitting on an Officer Jenny like that while she writes him a ticket. And that Eevee is nothing short of adorable. Now I'm wondering how you'll portray Red, now...

Sorry for not replying- I've been very busy/lazy lately (awful combination). Rest assured I have been reading, though. I could easily imagine Blue actually hitting on an Officer Jenny like that while she writes him a ticket. And that Eevee is nothing short of adorable. Now I'm wondering how you'll portray Red, now...

No need to be sorry, I understand completely. I love Eevee and I wanted to make it as cute as possible! Red is definitely coming and I hope I portray him well as he is an all around awesome character. Thanks for the comment!

This is the last chapter named after a region as the end of this chapter marks the end of the main character introductions and begins the real story! Hope you guys enjoy and again feel free to comment!

Here is who has asked me to be on the PM List so far: Grav, Missingno. Master; If you want to be added, let me know!

Chapter 4- Unova

Despite the fact that it was nearing midnight, the amount of lights coming from the skyscrapers, the bridge, and the billboards in Castelia City made it seem as light as if the sun was out. Though the city was always busy, it was especially hectic today due to the combination of the Castelia Conkeldurr baseball playoff game and the two Champions that were present in the city for the day.

Two teenage girls followed by an enormous adult male were walking through the great crowd surrounding them outside of the Castelia International Airport. Though Mistraltron City was more known for flying, Castelia had easily the largest airport in Unova. In fact, Castelia had the largest everything in Unova. One of the girls had blonde hair that stuck out of her green hat, which perfectly matched her eyes. She was constantly wearing orange.

The second girl was a couple of years younger and had darker skin. Her pink and white dress looked very large on her, as the sleeves drooped down far from her hands and the bottom of the dress was nearly touching the ground. A crown was placed on her violet-colored hair, which had loops near the ears and was tied back into an enormous ponytail in the back.

The man was leading the way for the two girls and creating a path through the increasingly large crowd, from which flashing camera lights and shouts of praise were coming. The majority of the crowd was either paparazzi or pre-teen girls. The man had darker skin than the second girl and arms like tree trunks. He towered over everyone in the crowd. As more and more people tried getting closer to the two girls, he would hold his arms out and repeat the same phrase in his booming voice, “Settle down, let us get by!

“Marshal, maybe we should stop and take some pictures with the kids,” the girl with the violet hair said. “They’ve been following and asking for a while now.”

“I just gotta keep you guys protected.” Marshal responded. “It’s easy to get lost in a crowd like this.”

Bianca and Marshal stood by as girl after girl (and even a young boy occasionally) posed with Iris for pictures. Marshal kept his arms crossed the entire time. He wasn’t concerned about the young kids getting pictures with the Unova Champion. He was more concerned about the paparazzi that would try to creep in closer and closer for pictures before he would step forward, intimidating them enough to keep their distance.

At one point, a girl around Iris’s age noticed Bianca. “Hey, aren’t you the one that works with Professor Juniper?”

A wide grin crossed Bianca’s face. “Yes, yes I am! So are you interested in…?”

“Yeah! You wouldn’t mind taking this picture of Iris and I, would you?” she asked as she handed Bianca her camera.

Bianca smiled awkwardly. “Hehe, sure,” she mumbled as she snapped the picture.

After close to an hour, the crowd finally died down and Marshal began leading Iris and Bianca towards their hotel suite. Iris patted Marshal on his shoulder, “I appreciate you coming along and helping us out, even though you aren’t a regular bodyguard,” she said.

Marshal smiled. “No problem. Castelia has the highest crime rate in Unova. You remind me of my daughter, and I would never want her wandering around in a city like this without someone keeping her safe. Same goes for you guys.”

“How funny is that!” Bianca exclaimed with a huge grin on her face that seemed to constantly be there. “I’m with my bodyguard,” she said as she looked at Iris, “and my bodyguard’s bodyguard!” she said, referring to Marshal. She wrapped both of her arms around Marshal’s gigantic arm. “I feel so safe with biceps as large as yours around!”

An uncomfortable Marshal lowered his eyebrows and slipped his arm out of Bianca’s grasp. “That’s gonna have to stop,” he said.

The trio was nearing the hotel and Iris looked off into the body of water in the distance. She imagined the other regions that were beyond it. “Seeing Cynthia was great,” she said. “I’m glad we got the chance to walk her to the airport and see her off. Her Garchomp may have been the coolest Pokemon I’ve ever seen!”

“And her Lucario was equally as awesome!” Bianca said with every word full of enthusiasm. “She’s the best Champion out of all the regions. Except for you, of course!”

They reached the hotel, which was fifteen stories high and had a golden, light-up “C” above the top floor. They rode the elevator all the way to the top floor where the Presidential Suite was. Marshal walked the girls to their room before leaving for his room across the hallway. Iris and Bianca immediately opened the blinds to reveal an enrapturing view of Castelia. They could see the lights from the bridge and buildings from miles away. They also looked down at the cruisers slowly wading through the water.

Iris plopped down on her bed and her crown fell off her head and rolled near her pillow. She stretched out her tired legs and yawned. “Being a celebrity is fun but it sure is tiring,” she said. “Thanks for coming with me, Bianca. It would have been a bummer without company like yours.”

“Always happy to help!” Bianca responded as she leaned against the vast window. She put her hands on her cheeks and sighed. “This is such an amazing view,” she said. “I love Nuvema town but nothing can beat this!”

“That was nice of Professor Juniper to give you Friday off so you could have the long weekend with Marshal and I,” Iris said, not moving from the bed. She was so used to using her Pokemon as transportation that she forgot how tiring excessive walking could be.

“That is was,” Bianca said. She took a small, digital camera out of her pocket. “Iris, do you want a picture with me in front of the Castelia skyline?” she asked. “This is profile picture material!”

Iris mustered some of her remaining energy to sit up. “Well, I don’t have one of those social websites,” she chuckled. “And I think I’ve had enough pictures for the day. My eyes hurt. I’ll be happy to take one of you, though!”

“Nah, I’ll just wait till tomorrow when you’re more up to it. I gotta have to have a picture with someone, silly! So anyway, tell me what being the Champion has felt like. I know it hasn’t been for long but it’s probably been so cool!”

Iris smiled. “It has been. It seems like all glamour but it’s a lot more work and traveling than I expected. It is nice to be taken more seriously, though. When I was a part-time Gym Leader with Drayden, I was always told how I couldn’t live up to him and how he should just take the entire gym for himself. I was just a little kid. Now people treat me like a woman. I enjoy the respect I get now.”

Bianca sat down on the other bed. “I’ve always had respect for you,” Bianca said. “I remember when we first met and you helped stop that awful Team Plasma from taking my Pokemon! I see what you’re saying though.” For the first time all day, the smile left Bianca’s face. “I love working with Professor Juniper but sometimes I wish I could be as successful as you or Cheren. You’re a Champion and Cheren is even a Gym Leader now. I can’t help but think that even though I’m really happy with what I do!”

“True success is doing what makes you happy every day,” Iris said. “Cheren has actually told me before that it’s hard to enjoy being a Gym Leader sometimes because of everything it entails, but his love for it wins out in the end. If you love what you do, no matter what it is, you’re successful!”

“Hmm…” Iris thought for a second. “Well, I always just thought it was about getting stronger and staying Champion as long as possible. I mean, no one stays Champion forever. I remember getting really good advice from Alder about growing relationships with and helping out Pokemon and people. I suppose being a Champion is a great way to do that.”

“That is very good advice!” Bianca said. “That’s what I love so much about working in Professor Juniper’s lab. I get to help out new trainers and take care of Pokemon.”

“See, that’s what I envy about your job. As much as I love battling, I want to make a difference too, you know?”

“I know what you mean,” Bianca said. “You’ll have plenty of chances to do that. I know that’s the kind of awesome person you are!”

Iris smiled. “Thanks.”

-----

In contrast to the hectic Castelia City environment, Route 19 presented a tranquil atmosphere where the air was calm and orange painted the sky as the sun was close to setting. An elderly man was sitting against a large oak tree with his legs crossed. He wore sandals, allowing his feet to feel the soft surface of the grass. Though his voice was deep and composed his hair was wild. It stuck way above and behind his head and its auburn shade made it resemble fire. He wore his contained Pokemon as a necklace. His large, powerful hand was softly strumming an acoustic guitar.

The tune was familiar to him as he played it every day. It was a slow-paced and beautiful piece of music. The man closed his eyes and hummed the song to himself as his fingers continued to pluck the strings. He looked around and waited for a moment after he finished. He concentrated on hearing anything he possibly could in response. The man sighed as he was unable to spot or hear anything.

After only a couple more minutes, the man saw two young boys walking down the road. He smiled as he knew exactly what would happen when one of them spotted him. Sure enough, the taller boy glanced over and saw the man. He tapped his friend on the shoulder. “Dude, it’s Alder!” he enthusiastically informed him.

“What?!” the other boy exclaimed.

The two quickly rushed over to Alder, who set his guitar aside and stood up to acknowledge them. Though he was past his sixties, he was still tremendous in stature. The heights of the boys only reached to Alder’s chest. “We’re huge fans! We’re trying to be Champions just like you!”

“Alright, let’s go!” Chris said as the two boys raced towards an open, grassy area. They stood apart from each other and released their Pokemon.

Chris released a Pidove, which was a diminutive bird Pokemon. Peter let out a Pignite, which was a burly, bipedal pig that blew fire out of its snout. Peter looked over at Alder. “A-alright, you watching?” he asked.

Alder crossed his arms and grinned as he nodded his head. “I sure am!” he said.

“Great! Pignite, use Flame Charge!” Peter shouted. Pignite stomped its feet rapidly on the ground and raced towards Pidove as its body ignited in flames.

“Dodge and use Quick Attack!” Chris ordered. Pidove flapped its wings and flew upward just in time to avoid Pignite. It then rapidly threw its body forward and slammed into Pignite’s gut, knocking it over.

Pidove’s beak sharpened and grew slightly in length as it connected with Pignite’s cheek. Pignite grunted as it stepped back, but was able to thrust its arm forward and slam Pidove to the ground. “Awesome!” Peter said. “Now finish it with Ember!”

“Piiiiig-Pignite!” Pignite cried as it released numerous embers from its snout. The embers hit Pidove dead on as it was trying to get up from the ground. It lay back down and unable to battle.

Peter pumped his fist in the air. “Yes, I beat you this time!” he boasted.

Chris returned his Pidove. “Well, I won our last two battles. I’ll getcha next time,” he said.

Chris and Peter anxiously ran towards Alder. They didn’t say anything, they just looked up at him, waiting for him to speak his opinion. “That was a great battle by both of you,” Alder said. “Chris, you have no shame in losing, your Pidove’s speed was terrific. Peter, your Pignite has great power.”

Both boys beamed. “Thanks!” they said in unison.

“At this rate, becoming the Champion looks like a realistic goal for the both of you. Let me ask you something, what are your plans after becoming a Champion?” Alder asked. He has asked this question to so many kids, he already knew what their answers would be.

Peter opened his mouth to say something then closed it before thinking for a moment. “Umm… that’s a good question. I guess I would say to become stronger.”

Chris nodded his head. “Yeah, that sounds good to me, too.”

Alder couldn’t help but chuckle after hearing that answer once again. “Becoming strong is a great thing, that’s for sure. I have nothing against working hard and reaching your full potential. Let me tell you this, however. The years I was Champion I knew it wouldn’t last forever, so I realized that simply being happy with and loving Pokemon and people was what I wanted. Both of your Pokemon battled hard and well, and while they showed great strength, don’t forget they also showed great love and passion for their trainers. Never forget to return that love back to them. These are my views and not everyone agrees, but take them as you will.”

Chris and Peter looked at each other and then at their Pokeballs. They each smiled. “I agree with you, Alder,” Peter responded. “I still think strength is most important, but I’ll definitely remember what you said.”

“Yeah, thanks!” Chris said. “It was great to meet you!”

Alder shook their hands. “And it was great meeting you both, as well. Good luck on your travels!”

As the boys left, Alder sat back down. Before picking his guitar back up, he released one of his Pokemon. It was an enormous bug that had six wings the color of Alder’s hair. It also had intense, blue eyes and a fuzzy body. Alder stroked its gleaming, white fur, feeling the great warmth that radiated from its body, before picking his guitar back up and playing once more. He recalled all of the intense battles he had with this particular partner, yet sharing music with it and being able to appreciate its presence was what pleased him during this moment. “I do miss Larvesta,” he said. “But I’m glad a part of it lives on in you, my friend.” He played his tune one more time and scanned the area, but in vain. “Love of Pokemon,”he repeated his own advice aloud.

-----

“Alright girls, you ready to set sail?” Marshal asked.

In order to avoid the crowded hassle of the airport, the three decided to take a ship to return Iris back to the Village of Dragons, which was just outside Opelucid City. “Ready,” Iris said.

“Oh, I suppose…” Bianca said as the three were walking to the dock. She glanced back and looked at the vast skyline of Castelia City. “Can’t we just move here or something?”

“No way, I’d go crazy,” Marshal laughed. “I get claustrophobic.”

“Didn’t know you were phobic of anything,” Bianca said. “I can’t believe you’re afraid of claustros!” Iris and Marshal looked at each other for a second and they both facepalmed.

Iris looked around the vast dock where numerous ships and small boats were preparing to set sail. It was early in the morning so it wasn’t as swarming with people as it typically was. She stopped. “Bianca, do you know which one leads to Opelucid?” she asked. “You called them before we left the hotel, right?”

Bianca leaped up and down and raised her hand. “Oh yes, I know!” she exclaimed. “Its…” she scanned the area and put her finger on her chin. “Umm… oh boy,” she stammered. She quickly looked around as Marshal crossed his arms and shook his head. Bianca then pointed at the ship that was the second to last on the right of the dock. “Oh, oh, oh, this one! Knew it the whole time!”

“Are you sure?” Marshal asked. “We better not be ending up in Kanto or anyplace like that.”

Bianca hesitated for a moment, then nodded her head and smiled. “Of course I’m sure, silly!”

A well-dressed greeter was waiting outside of the ship as the trio approached. “It is truly an honor to meet you,” he said as he bowed. He then motioned his hand to lead them on the ship. “I hope it is a pleasurable ride back to Opelucid!”

“Toldja!” Bianca boasted.

“Thank you very much!” Iris said as she was the first of the three to head on the ship. She leaned against the railing on the end and stared out at the vast ocean. She saw numerous water Pokemon leaping from and swimming throughout the water. Not only was it a more direct route, but traveling by sea was simply a more breathtaking form of transportation for her. A few minutes after the ship set sail, they were in the middle of the ocean and the Castelia skyline gradually grew smaller

She looked back and saw Marshal looking off in the distance. Bianca was chatting up one of the crew members. Iris noticed that, other than she, Marshal, and Bianca, there weren’t any other passengers besides a young man who looked to be about seventeen. He was tall with tan skin and a baseball cap being worn backwards covered his blonde hair. He wore a plaid, button-down shirt and jeans. Iris noticed him out of the corner of her eye and he was already approaching her. She turned all the way around to acknowledge him. His handsome face gave her a warm smile. “I apologize if I’m intruding but I just had to meet the Unova Champion.”

Iris, who had to look up to see the face of the older boy, unsuccessfully tried to hide her blushing. “Oh, it’s fine,” she said.

“My name is Josh,” he said. “I’m from Castelia but I’ve always wanted to visit Opelucid. It would be an honor if I could get some battling tips from you. Gaining wisdom from the Champion can only make me a better trainer, right?”

“Wisdom?” Iris repeated. She smiled. “I’ve never been called wise before. I’m used to other people giving me wisdom.”

“Well, it’s about time you got recognized for the trainer you are,” Josh said. “A strong and beautiful woman.”

“Woman?” Iris repeated him again. After all the years of being referred to as a child, being called a woman by this handsome stranger filled her with both surprise and pleasure. She couldn’t keep her eyes off of him.

“Yeah,” Josh responded. He glanced at Marshal in the distance, who had his gigantic arms crossed and was staring directly at him. He grinned as he placed his arm around her.

Iris stiffened a bit as she felt his arm around her. “Um, t-thank you,” she said.

As Josh saw Marshal walk over to them, the grin remained on his face. “You’re a bit too close, son,” Marshal said. “You just met her.”

“Who are you, her daddy?” Josh responded with no fear in his voice.

Marshal yanked his arm off of Iris. “No, her bodyguard,” he said.

Josh nodded his head and chuckled as he looked at an embarrassed Iris. “So, the Champion needs a bodyguard, huh?”

Marshal stepped closer to Josh, who still didn’t back down. “What do you want?” he asked.

Immediately after he finished that question, Josh nodded his head to someone in the back of the ship. A large Pokemon resembling a floating sphere of ice with horns soared from behind Marshal and rammed into him, knocking him over. Iris covered her mouth with her hands. “Marshal!” she exclaimed as she helped him up.

As Marshal got up, he and Iris looked around for Josh, who was nowhere in sight. Instead, they were faced with a group of people wearing light blue uniforms. Their helmets with the dotted patterns were the same as the ones being worn by the group that attacked Meteor Falls, however these were nearly transparent rather than the ones that looked like they were made of steel. The one standing in the middle had pale skin and his blonde mustache was thick and bushy. He was the only one not wearing a helmet, revealing his shiny, bald head. “Well done, Glalie,” the old man said as the ice Pokemon with disturbingly dark facial features floated back towards its master. Josh, who was now wearing a uniform, walked up next to the man, who patted him on the shoulder. “And well done to you as well, my boy,” he said. The man spoke very slowly and with a soft, mild tone contrast to that of Captain Franklin.

Iris and Marshal looked around the ship at the mysterious group of soldiers. “Why did you steal this ship?” Marshal asked, keeping as calm as he could. “What do you want with us?”

“Well, we were hoping Sinnoh’s own Cynthia would be with you as we heard the rumors that she was with you, but I will settle with the Unova Champion as well as an Elite Four member,” the man explained in a well-spoken manner as he began walking closer to them. Because of a gimpy right leg, he used an elongated staff topped with a bulky, transparent gem to support him as he walked. “You see, our group is searching for a trio of legendary Pokemon. Since Cynthia specializes in studying legendaries, we were hoping she would be with you so we could ask her a few questions. Since that is not the case, however, I suppose we could still get something out of you two.”

“Who are you?” Iris asked the man before glancing at Josh, who was still arrogantly grinning his head off. “What are the legendaries you’re looking for?”

“Excuse me for my rudeness, I forgot to introduce myself,” he said. “I am Captain Richard Sirois and I command the Ice Branch. I’m afraid I can’t tell you any more than that or I risk getting in trouble with the Commander. Now, without further ado…” he said as he snapped his finger, prompting everyone on the ship to release and Ice-type Pokemon, “It is time for us to subdue you.”

Iris cringed at the sight of the Ice-types. She felt herself begin to shiver, but she exhaled quickly. “You’re a woman. Be a woman, not a girl,” she said to herself. “No way, Captain,” Iris then snapped as she tossed a Pokeball on the ground. A towering dragon with dark-green scales and small, red eyes popped out of the ball. It had sharp, elongated, scythe-like tusks. “A Champion doesn’t care about the type disadvantage; it’s time for Haxorous to subdue you.”

“Throh and I got your back, Champ,” Marshal said as released a Pokemon, as well. It was a short but remarkably burly Pokemon with rough, maroon skin. It clenched its three powerful fingers on its right hand. Throh was wearing a karate outfit with a black belt tied around it.

Iris looked around, waiting for Bianca to call out a Pokemon and help them out. “Hey, what did you do with Bianca?!” she barked.

Captain Sirois didn’t say anything. He simply motioned his head towards the back of the ship where Bianca was in the grasp of two of the Ice Branch soldiers. She kept struggling and trying to reach a Pokeball, but the soldiers wouldn’t let her budge. “Guys, please get them off of me!” she frantically shouted over to Iris and Marshal.

Glalie opened its gaping mouth and fired a beam of ice at the head of Haxorus, who quickly ducked as it was running towards its opponent. “Dragon Claw!” Iris loudly commanded. Haxorus’s claws grew to a size of twice their length and began glowing as it slashed Glalie’s vast face. Glalie crashed hard into one of the walls of the ship, causing it to rock forward.

“Do your thing, Throh!” Marshal shouted as dozens of Pokemon including Snorunt, Glacion, and Cubchoo surrounded Throh. A smirk crossed the right side of Throh’s mouth as it grabbed one of the Cubchoo and hurled it into the pile of Ice-types, knocking over at least five or six in the process.

Without even glancing backwards, Throh mightily threw its leg back and kicked one of its opponents before throwing powerful punches to its sides, knocking out opponents left and right.

“Glalie, get up and use another Ice Beam! Aim for the feet!” Captain Sirois ordered.

Iris smiled. “Thanks for calling out your strategy! Haxorus, jump in the air and dodge! Then use Dragon Rage!” Haxorus leaped in the air, narrowly missing the Ice Beam, and then it unleashed a blue, swirling stream from its mouth. Glalie fired another Ice Beam, which collided in midair with Dragon Rage. The force knocked Glalie on its backside, but Haxorus shielded its face and was not affected by the blast one bit. “Quick, use Dragon Claw one more time!” Iris commanded. As Glalie tried getting back up, Haxorus slammed it to the ground with its claws one more time, knocking it unconscious.

Captain Sirois returned Glalie and cleared his throat. “No matter, we still have you outnumbered.” He looked around and saw Throh smashing Pokemon left and right. The ship was rocking around more and more as the battles raged on. Captain Sirois was able to maintain his composure and confidence as he turned to Josh. “Son, it’s your turn to have a go at her. Show me what I’ve taught you.”

Josh smirked. “With pleasure,” he said as he gripped a Pokeball. He winked at Iris. “As long as you don’t get too distracted by me, we can have a good battle,” he teased.

As much as she wanted to fire back at him, Iris told herself how important it was to stay mature and live up to her title. “Let’s both stay focused, Haxorus,” she said, ignoring Josh completely.

Josh raised his eyebrows and laughed. “Cold shoulder, huh? Alright, then. Beartic, let’s go!” he shouted as he hurled his Pokeball on the deck of the ship.

A massive polar bear Pokemon came out to face Haxorus. It pounded its meaty fists together and roared. It had large icicles sticking out its fur. Iris tucked her hands inside of her sleeves. She could feel the coolness radiating from the body of Beartic. “Let’s make this quick, Haxorus,” Iris said. “Dragon Claw!”

Beartic’s large fist balled up and was rapidly concealed with ice. It threw its fist at Haxorus, who ducked and slashed its torso with its claws. Beartic winced but stayed strong as it was able to pound the side of Haxorous’s head. Beartic came in for another blow when Haxorus regained its footing and struck its face, sending it on its back. “What are you doing? You got a type advantage!” Josh scolded as he watched his Pokemon try to get back up.

A violet glow surrounded Haxorus’s body and it dove forward with great speed, ramming into Beartic. Haxorus slammed it into one of the walls of the ship as the momentum of the two Pokemon went forward. The ship rocked forward hard, causing everyone to lose their balance and fall over. Water began spilling onto the ship and the two guards holding Bianca lost their grip. “Freedom!” Bianca shouted as she began running towards Iris and Marshal. One of the guards grabbed her hard by the arm, but she was able to slip out of his grasp.

As some of the ocean water entered the ship and splashed around the deck, Josh noticed Beartic, who lay on the ground unconscious. “It’s knocked out cold,” he muttered as he returned his Pokemon. Iris, Marshal, and Bianca stood on one side of the ship as they looked around and saw the dozens of knocked out Pokemon being returned into their Pokeballs.

Iris smiled and nodded at Haxorous, who lifted Captain Sirois in the air by his shirt with one hand and Josh in the other. Iris walked forward with her hands on her hips. “Now, you guys are going to turn this ship around to Castelia where we can find another ship to take us back home. Understood?” she said.

“Yes,” Captain Sirois said.

“Yes what?” Iris asked.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Captain Sirois said.

-----

The gigantic waterfall cascaded down into a crystal clear pool. Steven and Wallace observed Gyardos as it swam around in the water. “Gyarados really likes it here,” Wallace said as he looked around the area. “As do I. You really got yourself a nice place here, Steven.”

“Well, it isn’t mine, it’s Hoenn’s,” Steven said. “Living here is a pleasure, though. So tell me about your Gyarados. How long has it been flying?”

“It’s been flying for a few months now but it hasn’t really gotten the hang of it until a month ago or so.” Wallace smiled as he revealed a scar on his upper arm. “We’ve had our share of accidents but it’s been worth it.”

“Seems like it,” Steven said. “You will be a much more formidable Champion, not that you already weren’t.”

“Indeed. I can’t wait to show off Gyarados’s new ability at the Wallace Cup. It is all about showing the style and beauty of Pokemon, not just power.” Wallace grinned . “We are sure to dazzle!”

“’Dazzle’ is never a word I would use, but I agree,” Steven said. “When is the Wallace Cup?”

“Beginning of next year. Not too far away,” Wallace said. “I already have a tentative plan for it but there are still a few things I need to do to raise attendance. It’s been steadily decreasing each year and I need something to get more people interested.”

“Anything in mind?” Steven asked.

“As a matter of fact, yes. It involves you. I wanted to get your opinion first.” Wallace stopped and began pacing back and forth. “This may seem like a very ambitious task, but what do you think about gathering Champions and former Champions to attend?”

Steven stopped for a moment to ponder. “Interesting,” he said. “I could only think of you and I as qualifiers, though. Every other former Hoenn Champion has passed away.”

“No,” Wallace spread his arms and his words grew louder and more enthusiastic. He began pacing faster. “I’m talking the world! Cynthia, Alder, Iris, Blue. I may even be able to get the Dragon Tamer and the boy from Mt. Silver.”

“Good luck being able to contact those last two,” Steven said. “Otherwise, I like the idea. All of us together could certainly draw interest.”

“Yes!” Wallace exclaimed. “The mere presence of one Champion alone attracts people to an area. Imagine getting all of them at once! That’s never happened before. The Wallace Cup turnout would be massive!”

Steven had to laugh at his friend’s excitement. “It sure would be. I say go for it.”

Wallace pumped his fist. “That’s what I’ll do then! I’ll tell the committee to confirm it with them but your blessing for this wonderful idea is all I need! I’ll get a Delibird to send the invites as soon as I can!”

“Good, then,” Steven said. He glanced back over at Gyarados in the pool and squinted when he noticed an odd-looking stone near the shallow part of the water. He walked over and picked it out of the water. He ran his hand over it and it felt much less slippery than he anticipated. Ingrained in it were dot patterns similar to the group that attacked him previously.

Wallace walked over to look. “Find something?” he asked.

Steven kept his eyes on it. “Yes. I’ve never seen anything like this here before. Is this what that group was looking for before? It seems like it’s made of steel. It’s not natural for that to be found in this part of Meteor Falls.”

“Do you know where it came from?” Wallace asked.

“I think so,” Steven said as he looked up at Wallace and weighed the object in his hand. “But I should double check with Dr. Kreter.”

The two reached the bottom of the falls at the front door of the building in a matter of seconds thanks to Gyarados. They entered the Kreter building, which looked more spacious on the inside than it appeared on the outside. All kinds of rocks from small stones to large boulders were set up in labs and displays throughout the room. Computers and other kinds of machinery were distributed all throughout the room, as well.

“Steven and Wallace! How goes it, fellas?” Dr. Kreter asked as he approached them. He was a heavyset man with a thick, bushy beard and a wide smile.

“Good,” Steven responded. “We were up near the falls and I found this,” Steven said as he handed Dr. Kreter the object he found.

Dr. Kreter put his glasses on and studied the object. “Very interesting,” he said. He spoke with a somewhat nasally voice. He quickly turned and headed to a scanner that read the content of the stone. “This almost looks like the magic kung fu stone in Claws of Fury III: Beartic’s Revenge.”

“Come again?” Wallace asked as his right eyebrow rose.

Dr. Kreter stopped and looked at Wallace. “The conclusion of the Brycen and Beartic kung fu trilogy? You’ve never heard of it?”

“Can’t say I have,” Wallace responded.

Dr. Kreter shook his head and smiled. “C’mon man, that movie is a classic!” He looked back at the machine, which finished analyzing the stone. “It says here this is made of pure steel. That doesn’t make sense though, pure steel has never been found in this geological environment.” He ran his finger along the dots.

Dr. Kreter looked up at Steven. “That group you met recently that attacked you. They had Steel Pokemon and wore steel-colored suits. You said they were looking for something,” he explained, making very animated motions with his body as he spoke. He tossed the steel rock up and down in his hand and then pointed at it. “This puppy is part of what they were after. See these dot patterns? It could have only come from a Registeel.”

“Yes! It only makes sense,” Steven said. “Groups like that are always after legendary Pokemon. The dots resemble those on the front of all three of the Regis. I can’t believe I never realized any of this before.”

“You’ve never seen it here?” Wallace said.

“No,” Steven said. “Since that group has been hunting it, though, they might have chased it here.”

“This is not its natural habitat,” Dr. Kreter said. “It seems as though that group is chasing it the same way the mutant Sceptile chased Ariados-Man.”

“What?” Wallace asked.

Dr. Kreter threw his hands up in the air. “That one just came out! No excuse not knowing that one!”

Wallace laughed nervously. “Okay, I’m sorry,” he said.

“Now I really have to keep an eye out for Registeel,” Steven said, ignoring Dr. Kreter and Wallace. “That group may come back to try and capture it. Arceus knows what they want to use it for.”

“We will be sure to keep an eye out,” Dr. Kreter said. “Our team can always research Registeel and find out how to track it. Heck, it may have already left back towards its original habitat. After you scared the life out of those guys with your Metagross, I don’t think we’ll be seeing them anytime soon.”

“Time will tell,” Wallace said. “Anyway, it was nice visiting, but those invitations won’t send themselves!”

-----

“Ready for one more, Garchomp? Let’s go!”

Wide open fields not far outside of Cynthia’s neighborhood lied ahead with miles of dirt ahead. Numerous prints of tire tracks were on the ground where others have tested their vehicles. The darker dirt formed a circular track. Garchomp was a fearsome-looking dragon with appendages that made it resemble a jet. It had the head of a hammerhead shark. It scraped its foot against the ground just as Cynthia revved the engine of her Jeep. The tires made a loud screeching sound as the car took off, leaving a cloud of dust behind it. Cynthia looked to her side just in time to see Garchomp sprinting right next to the car.

Cynthia nodded her head in approval just before adjusting the gear stick and rapidly spinning the wheel to the left at the first turn of the dirt track. The Jeep quickly and sharply made the turn and Cynthia stomped her foot harder on the gas pedal to speed up. Garchomp effortlessly made the turn on foot. It put its head down and pumped its arms harder as it did its best to keep up with Cynthia. She looked over at her strongest Pokemon and grinned. “Not bad. Try this on for size,” she said as she pushed the gear stick forward and flew through the last leg of the track as rapidly as possible. She kept her eyes on the starting point and slowed down after crossing it. After stopping, she looked back to see where Garchomp was, but it was nowhere to be found.

Cynthia frantically turned her head back only to see Garchomp standing in front of her car with a big smirk on its face. Cynthia slumped in her seat and put her hand on her forehead. “Wow. You just handed me my first loss,” she said before climbing out of the car and patting Garchomp. “Your speed has improved immensely. That was your best trial yet.” She returned Garchomp into its Pokeball. “You deserve a good rest.”

Cynthia got back into her car and headed to her neighborhood, but not before stopping at a small stand nearby. The young woman behind the stand beamed when she saw her most loyal customer approach. “Hello, Ms. Champ!” she said. “Good to have you back in town! The usual, I presume?”

“Thank you! And yes, the usual would be great!” Cynthia replied. The vendor handed Cynthia an ice cream cone with three gigantic scoops: One of chocolate, one of vanilla, and one of strawberry. Cynthia licked the bottom of the ice cream pile. “Mmm, Casteliacones are good, but they got nothing on this.”

After getting back to her house, Cynthia was greeted by Carolina, who handed her a letter with a unique shade of sapphire coloring. “I don’t even know who sent it here,” Carolina said. “Whoever knocked at the door was gone well before I even got there. They left the letter on the mat.”

Lora came down the stairs. “I wanna see what’s in it, too!”

“It’s Cynthia’s mail, don’t be nosey,” Carolina scolded.

“Hmm,” was all Cynthia could say as she was in the middle of a large gulp of strawberry ice cream. She licked her lips before speaking. “I guess we’ll see,” she said as she tore open the envelope. She took a moment to read the letter. Her eyes scanned back and forth as she continued eating. After finishing, her eyes looked up to Carolina and Lora. “It’s from Wallace,” she said.

“All the way from Hoenn?” Carolina said. “What is he writing to you about?”

“Well, he’s inviting me to come to Hoenn and attend the Wallace Cup,” she answered.

“Aw, but you just got back here!” Lora said.

“Well, it’s not for a little while,” Cynthia said. “Plus, it’s not like I have to go.”

Carolina took the letter and read it. “Don’t be so nosey!” Lora joked.

Carolina lifted a finger to her lips as she intently read the letter. “All the Champions are invited?” she said. “I definitely wouldn’t pass this up!” Carolina said.

“It does sound nice,” Cynthia said. “All the Champions in one place. Should draw a large crowd.”

“Does that mean Blue will be there?” Lora asked with great excitement in her voice. “I should come with you!”

Cynthia laughed and playfully poked Lora’s nose with her pointer finger. “As your protective older sister, I wouldn’t let you near that boy. He’s too much of a womanizer. It would be a shame leaving you guys after such a short time of being back, though.”

“Now, now,” Carolina said. “You’re a grown woman and you should be off seeing the world. Other than Unova, you’ve never been to another region. I’ve done research in Hoenn before and I can attest to the fact that it is a gorgeous region. I wouldn’t want you to miss out on that.”

Cynthia looked at the letter one more time and smiled. “Okay, I’ll go,” she said.

-----

The ice-cold wind began blowing directly in his face. A young man of nineteen, wearing nothing more than a t-shirt and jeans, sat with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. His messy, dark hair sticking out from under his baseball cap was blowing around in the wind. He breathed in through his nose, embracing the cool air. The hairs on his arm stood up, though his body was not shivering the way it used to when he first started this form of meditation years ago. Finding peace and strength through adverse weather was the main goal of this exercise. If his Pokemon could endure vast amounts of pain and discomfort, so could he.

Though it wasn’t snowing as hard as it was earlier in the day, the young man felt small flurries begin to fly against his skin and dissolve. The sound of the wind brushing against his ears was the only sound in the area. He stood up as straight as he could. His chest slowly heaved up and down and he felt the sharpness of the cold air run through his mouth and down his throat. It felt surprisingly nice; almost like a refreshing, cold drink.

His ears perked slightly when he heard the sound of flapping wings off in the distance. He opened his eyes and looked around by only moving his eyes. His neck and head remained motionless. The young man searched the entire mountainous region. He sat on top of the highest point in the area, giving him a clear view of the snowcap mountains around him. It wasn’t until a minute after hearing the flapping noise that a pudgy bird Pokemon with glistening, white feathers ascended right in front of him. The Pokemon adjusted its red jacket and opened the sack it was hauling.

The Pokemon pulled a letter out of the bag and handed it to the young man, who expressed his gratitude with a simple nod of his head before the bird took off through the mountains. He opened the letter, which read:

Greetings,

This is a formal invitation for the Wallace Cup, an annual event in the Hoenn region that displays the power and majesty of Pokemon belonging to the most skilled Coordinators. It is an event that has been nationally televised each year and it continues to get vast amounts of publicity. I would like to gather every Champion and former Champion across the world to attend. It would be a great honor to have all of the world’s greatest trainers at this event. Your presence alone would give the Coordinators the utmost amount of motivation to perform well, I’m sure of it! This event would not be the same without you, so please consider attending. The address among other contact information is enclosed.

Best Regards,

-Wallace

After reading the letter, the young man stared off into the distance for a while. Numerous thoughts raced through his mind as he clutched the letter in his hands. He finally folded it up and stuck it in his backpack, as the snow was beginning to get it wet. He then closes his eyes once more and inhaled deeply.